Electrical connector

ABSTRACT

An electrical connector assembly is formed of a pair of concentric members with the outer concentric member being internally threaded at its front end and inwardly tapered towards its rear end. The inner concentric member is externally threaded for mating with the outer member. Upon threadably mating of the concentric members, the inner member is radially compressable at one end for securing the inner member to an electrical conductor. Moreover, step-sized collets, which are removable, are provided at the rear inner surface of the outer member so as to accommodate various diameter electrical conductors. Grounding shell members may be mounted in the connectors with mating of the connectors causing an electrical interconnection between the grounding shells.

United States Patent 1 Paugh [451March 20, 1973 1 ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR I[75] Inventor: Edward C. Paugh, Hacienda, Primary ExaminerflMarvinChampion Heights, Calif- Assistant Examiner-Robert A. Hafer Attorney-C.Cornell Remsen, Jr. et al. [73] Ass1gnee: International Telephone andTelegraph Corporation, New York, N.Y.

[22] Filed: July 6, 1971 21 Appl. No.2 159,841

[52 US. 0.. .,.....339/14 R, 339/91 R, 339/101, 339/103 [51] Int. Cl...H0lr 3/06 [58] Field of Search...339/l4 R, 14 P, 276 R, 276 M, 339/91R, 91 P, 75, 82, 89, 176

[56] References Cited I UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,474,377 10/1969 Carlsonet al ..339/l4 R 3,569,909 3/l97l Garver ..339/9l R 3,609,632 9/197!Vetter ..339/l4 R 3,467,940 9/1969 Wallo .339/l4 R 3,466,590 9/1969Sylvester ..339/l4 R 5 4 5 7 "l "'1 a2 84 74, I

72 I 7a Q4 1 I [57 ABSTRACT An electrical connector assembly is formedof a pair of concentric members with the outer concentric member beinginternally threaded at its front end and 2 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures Lie2 74 PATEY-HEDHARZ 01373 SHEET 1 OF 2 INVENTOR.

EDWARD 0. PAUGH- BY I W -71 M A TTOQ/V/EV PATEf-HEUHARZOISH 3721,9139

SHEET 2 BF 2 INVENTOR.

QT TOE/V5 Y Eon/n20 6. P ws/4 ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR The inventionrelates, in general, to electrical connectors and, more particularly, toan electrical connector for interconnecting cable connector containingan external grounding circuit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Conventional audio connectors which are usedfor interconnecting coaxial cables which have a single or multipleconductor may include a metallic braid for grounding or shieldingpurposes. Typically, such connectors comprise a mating plug andreceptacle connec tor. These connectors may include a latching mechanismwhich allows rapid disconnect of the connectors as well as a lockingdevice for securing the connectors together during operation. Moreover,such connectors are typically provided with clamping devices which clampthe electrical cable to provide a strain relief forthe soldered orcrimped conductors of the cable. Further, a flexible member at the endof the cable acts as a strain reducing member. Typically, such aflexible member is designed to restrict the conductor bend radius andconsequently reduce stress concentrations. Mounted within each of theconnectors are a male and female type contact which provides frictionalmounting between mating contacts. The contacts are typically mounted inan insulator to isolate them from one another as well as the externalhousings. Finally, a means of electrically connecting the plug andsocket halves to provide an external ground circuit for the conductorshield braiding must be provided.

The above-mentioned conventional audio-type cable connectors with anexternal ground circuit contained therein are normally difficult tomanufacture due to the many interrelated components. Moreover, suchconnectors are subject to unmating failure if clamping screws are notcompletely tight. Moreover, such devices require that the shellcomponents of the connector be electrically conductive so as to performa path in the external ground circuit. Should the shell components benonconductive, which is normally desirable from a weight as well as acost standpoint, the ground circuit cannot be accomplished. Moreover,with separate individual latching and insulating members, the totalnumber of parts required to assemble the connector rises. With such alarge number of parts, assembly of the connector is complicated andassembly errors can go undetected. Moreover, the components used asflexure strain reliefs are impaired functionally because ofreducedcross-sections formed at critical places. This feature causes prematurefailure, and due to decreased cable bend radii, increases the strain inthe conductor. Tyfpical tension strain releases are predominantly metaland as siich require positive insuis utilized which further insulatesthe conductor circuits and is not required to be conductive as in priorart connectors. By utilizing a one piece insulator and latch, which arebridged by a thin web of plastic material which acts as a live hinge,components are reduced and maximum advantage of simplified assembly isrealized. Moreover, the thermoplastic hinge provides an extremely longcycle life with positive positioning of coupled components. Moreover,the flexure strain relief is tightened to provide a bend radius thatdoes not have stress increasing discontinuities. Further, step-sizecollets are provided at the cable entry to provide close s'ize matchingto a number of cable diameters.

By utilizing a thermoplastic bend and plane relief,

the clamping member need not be insulated from the conductor. Moreover,by using selected thermoplastic materials, a wide range of cablediameters can be firmly gripped without producing excessive stress.Also, by incorporating the tension strain relief in two majorcomponents, i.e., the shell and flexure strain relief, the overallnumber of parts are reduced as well as simplifying field assembly.Further, the locking tines and driving collet are combined in the othermajor components,

thus simplifying manufacture while simultaneously not detracting fromperformance.

The advantages of the invention, both as to its con- 1 struction andmode of operation, will be readily appreciated as the same becomesbetter understood by reference to the following detailed descriptionwhen considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in whichlike referenced numerals designate like parts throughout the figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 depicts a cross-sectional viewof a plug and receptacle connector assembled in accordance withprinciples of the invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded perspective view of the receptacle halfof the connector;

vFIG. 3 shows an exploded perspective view of the plug half of theconnector;

FIG. 4 depicts a cross-sectional view taken along the line 44 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the assembled connectorstaken along the line 5-5 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the connector taken along theline 6-6 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 7 depicts a cross-sectional view of the connector taken along theline 7-7 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings,there isshown in FIG. 1 a cross-sectional view of a plug connector 12and a receptacle connector 14 made in accordance with the preferredembodiment of the invention. The receptacle connector 14, shown inexploded view in FIG. 2, comprises a strain relief 22 having fittedtherein an insulator shell 24. Within the insulator shell 24 there ispositioned a grounding sleeve 26, and within the grounding sleeve thereis mounted a pin insulator 28 having mountedtherein contact pins 32. Ascrew 34 may be utilized tosecure the grounding sleeve 26 and pininsulator 28 within the insulator shell 24.

The plug connector 12 is shown in greater detail in exploded view inFIG. 3 and comprises a strain relief 42 which can be made identical tothe strain relief 22 of the plug connector. Positioned within the strainrelief is a plug shell 44 having a socket insulator 46 positionedtherein. Also mounted within the shell 44 is a plastic latching device48 which is spring biased by means of a spring 52. Socket contacts 54are positioned within the insulator 46 and the front end of the latchdevice 48. The insulator 46 and latching member 48 are positioned withina grounding sleeve 56, the grounding sleeve, in turn, being mounted inthe shell 44.

The rear end 62 of the strain relief 22 contains a plu- A rality ofstep-sized collets 64 v ihich decrease in size from the front of therear of the rear end of the strain relief. The purpose of the decreasingbores is to allow a cable to extend therethrough, and the strain reliefprovides a tight fit for different size cables. This is accomplished byremoving the end of the strain relief whose diameter is smaller than thecable size. The central portion of the strain relief is formed of aplurality of corrugations with vertically extending corrugations 66alternately interspaced with horizontally extending corrugations 68, asshown in FIGS. 6 and 7, respectively. The bore portion 72 in thecorrugations define a forward flared portion forming a continuation ofthe collets 64. The front end portion 74 of the strain relief isinternally threaded as at 76. The flared bore 72 terminates at a point78 where upon a bore portion 82 is formed in the strain relief whichtapers from the termination of the threaded portion 76 to the point 78.Further, a gripping surface 84 is formed on the outer surface of theportion 74 of the strain relief 22.

The shell 24 comprises a rear collapsible portion 86 which is split inquarter sections by means of slots 88. The front end of the portion 86is threaded at its outer surface 92 so as to allow the strain relief 22to be threaded thereon. Forwardly of the threaded portion 92, there is acylindrical shell portion 94. The shell portion contains an opening 96for insertion of the screw 34. Moreover, on the interior surface of theshell portion 94, there is a polarizing keyway 97 formed therein forcorrectly positioning the grounding sleeve 26 therein. Moreover, arectangular slot 98 is formed on the front inner surface of the portion94 which provides polarization for the plug connector half 12. Thegrounding sleeve 26 is generally cylindrically shaped and contains agrounding leg 102 which extends from the rear end thereof and has anopening 104 therein for attachment of a grounding wire thereto. Anopening 106 is formed in the grounding sleeve which allows the screw 34to pass therethrough. At the rear end of the sleeve, a lip 108 is formedand an axially extending slot 112 is formed in the grounding sleeve. Thelip 108, together with the slot 112, allows correct positioning of theinsulator member 28 therein. The outer surface 1 14 of the slot 112 maybe considered to be a key for correctly positioning the grounding sleevewithin the keyway 97 of the shell 24. Moreover, an upwardly protrudinglip 116 is bent outwardly near the front surface of the grounding shellto form an opening 118 therein, the purpose of which will be explainedhereinafter.

The insulator member 28 is formed with a plurality of axially extendingbores 122 into which the pin contacts 32 are mounted, as isconventional. The pin contacts may contain crimp or solder pots 124 atthe rear end thereof for securing caps thereto. Moreover, a threadedopening 126 is formed in the insulator for insertion of the screw 34therein. Formed on the outer surface of the insulator is an axiallyextending key 128 which allows correct positioning of the insulator inthe grounding sleeve 26 with the key 128 fitting into the slot position1 12.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the plug connector portion 14 contains a strainrelief 42 which is normally made identical to the strain relief 22 ofthe receptacle connector 12 and, therefore, will not be described ingreater detail. The strain relief 42 is threaded onto a plug shell 44whose rear half is similar to the receptacle shell 24 in that its rearend is split as at 132 and forwardly of the split rear end there arethreads 134 which mate with the forward internal threaded portion of thestrain relief 42. The front end 136 is generally cylindrical in shapeand contains an enlarged forward bore portion 138 and a reduced'diameterrear bore portion 142. The junction of the bore portions 138 and 142define a forward facing shoulder 144. Further, an axially extending slot146 is formed in the cylindrical portion 136 and extends from the frontsurface 148 of the plug shell 44 rearwardly to a forward facing shoulder152. Further, a keyway 154 extends from the front surface 148rearwardly. An opening 156 is found in the front end for insertion of ascrew 158.

The insulator 46 is formed of a plurality of conventional bore portions162 for insertion of the socket contacts 54 therein. The outer surfaceof the insulator 46 contains an enlarged front diameter portion 164 anda reduced diameter rear portion 166. The junction of the portions 164and 166 form a rearward facing shoulder 168 which abuts the forwardfacing shoulder 144 of the plug shell when the insulator is positionedtherein. Moreover, a keyway 172 is formed axially on the outer surfaceof the insulator 46. An axially extending slot 174 extends the entirelength of the insulator. The slot 174 has a generally constant depth atits rear end which tapers gradually toward the outer surface of thefront portion of the insulator portion 164. Further, a curved lip 176extends forwardly of the front surface 178 of the insulator andterminates in a chambered slot 182 extending from the bottom portion ofthe lip into the front surface 17 8 of theinsulator.

The spring member 52 contains generallyU-shaped front portion 184 whosefree end is insertable into the slot 182 with the U-shaped portionabutting adjacent the lip 176 and with the free rear end 186 of thespring extending outwardly toward the outer surface of the insulator 46.

The member 48 is formed of a generally cylindrical front portion 192having bores 194 therethrough which form a continuation of the bores 162of the insulator 46. A latch portion 196 is formed at a live hingejunetion 198 with the outer surface of the portion 192 The latch portion196 is generally rectangular in shape and contains a locking hookportion 200 as well as a projecting portion 202. Further, the front endof the cylindrical member 192 has an outwardly extending portion 204thereby providing a slight recess portion 206 along the bottom surfaceof the cylindrical member and an enlarged recess surface 208 adjacentthe hinge 198 The grounding sleeve 56 is generally cylindrical in shapeand contains a lip portion 214 at the front end thereof. Further, afirst key 216 is formed on its outer surface and a second key 218 formedon the inner surface of the grounding sleeve. The keys 216 and 218 areadapted to be inserted into the keyways 154 and 172, respectively.Further, a grounding lug 222, has an opening 224 therein, to which thegrounding braid of a cable may be secured. Moreover, a rectangular slot226 is formed in the surface of the grounding sleeve. Also, an opening228 is formed in the grounding shell 52 for insertion of the screw 158.

In assembling the plug connector, the member 48 is inserted into thegrounding sleeve 42 until the front recessed portion 208 abuts the lip214. The locking hook portion 198 and portion 202 then protrudes throughthe slot 226. Then the insulator member 46 can be inserted into thegrounding sleeve with correct orientation obtained by means of thekeyway 172 and key 218. The spring 52 is mounted on the insulator priorto insertion of the insulator so that when the insulator is inserted,the rear portion 186 of the spring abuts the latch portion 196 of themember 48 directly below the portion 202. This causes the depressingportion 202 to extend through the slot 206 and outward movement islimited due to the fact that the free end of the latch portion 196 abutsthe grounding sleeve to the rear of the slot 226. Then the plug shell 44may be inserted over the grounding shell 52 with the proper matingachieved by the key 216 fitting into the keyway 154.

As can be readily seen, when the strain relief 22 is threaded onto theconnector shell 24, the point 78 will tend to collapse the the split endportion 86 of the shell 24. The collapsing portion 86 would, in turn,tend to grab the cable outer surface and form a strain relief. Ofcourse, as previously pointed out, the collets 64 form an-additionalstrain relief.

When the connector members 12 and 14 are mated together in the positionas shown in FIG. 1, the inner surface of the grounding sleeve 26 forms afriction fit with the outer surface of the grounding sleeve 56. To matethe connectors, it is necessary to depress projection portion 202allowing hook 200 to enterthe grounding sleeve 26. When the portion 202is released, the hook projects through opening 118 and axial separationof the connectors cannot occur since the member 116 forms a barrier forthe hook 200. Thus, to separate the connectors, it is necessary to onceagain depress the latching portion 202.

What is claimed is:

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising:

a plug connector and a receptacle connector;

said plug connector and said receptacle connector each being formed ofan outer insulator shell and an inner insulator member having aplurality of contacts therein;

a cylindrical grounding shell surrounding the inner insulator member ofone of said connectors and extending from the forward to the rear end ofsaid member, said shell being formed with a slot therein;

grounding means on the other of said connector members contacting saidgrounding shell; and said inner insulator member being provided withmeans movable through said slot for latching said connectors in matingengagement.

2. An electrical connector as set forth in claim 1 wherein:

said latching means includes an integral hinge element formed of asection of the inner insulator member of said one connector; and

said hinge element including a portion thereof projecting through anopening in said grounding shell operable upon actuation to release saidlatching means.

* 4K III

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising: a plug connector and areceptacle connector; said plug connector and said receptacle connectoreach being formed of an outer insulator shell and an inner insulatormember having a plurality of contacts therein; a cylindrical groundingshell surrounding the inner insulator member of one of said connectorsand extending from the forward to the rear end of said member, saidshell being formed with a slot therein; grounding means on the other ofsaid connector members contacting said grounding shell; and said innerinsulator member being provided with means movable through said slot forlatching said connectors in mating engagement.
 2. An electricalconnector as set forth in claim 1 wherein: said latching means includesan integral hinge element formed of a section of the inner insulatormember of said one connector; and said hinge element including a portionthereof projecting through an opening in said grounding shell operableupon actuation to release said latching means.